02:55 PM EDT, 06/13/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Starbucks ( SBUX ) was handed a win by the US Supreme Court on Thursday in a unanimous ruling that overturned a lower court ruling ordering the company to reinstate seven employees who were fired after they organized a press event announcing their unionization drive at one of its coffee shops in Memphis, Tennessee.

The National Labor Relations Board in a complaint alleged Starbucks ( SBUX ) had engaged in unfair labor practices in 2022 when it fired the employees, prompting the board to seek a preliminary injunction that would have reinstated the fired workers.

A federal judge in Tennessee initially agreed ruled in favor of the NLRB and ordered Starbucks ( SBUX ) to rehire the employees. The ruling was later affirmed by the Sixth US Circuit Court of Appeals, which Starbucks ( SBUX ) then appealed to the Supreme Court.

The company didn't immediately respond to a request for comment by MT Newswires.

"Working people have so few tools to protect and defend themselves when their employers break the law," Lynne Fox, president of the Workers United union organizing Starbucks ( SBUX ) employees, said in a statement. "That makes today's ruling by the Supreme Court particularly egregious."

Workers are continuing to organize, with employees at 20 Starbucks ( SBUX ) stores filing petitions to join Starbucks Workers United last week, she said. There are nearly 450 unionized Starbucks ( SBUX ) stores across the country, according to Fox.

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